The New Digi
by MadDogLucario96
Summary: Sequel/parallel story to Free As A Bird. Basically the second group of Digidestined join forces to take Japan by storm. Will they have just as much luck as Digivolution did or will they crumble when the pressure gets to be too much? Find out. Rated T for language, drug use, major character death. Ken/Yolei. CANCELLED
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, everyone, and welcome to this sequel, or parallel story depending on how you look at it, to 'Free As A Bird' focusing on the second group of Digidestined and their path to brief stardom. I've been wanting to do a story with the 02 kids for a while now and I saw the opportunity to do that right now. Once again, with possibly a few exceptions, many of the songs that will be used do not belong to me so I am disclaiming that right away. Crazy to think we have one more Tri movie left out this coming summer but for now I can't wait for the dub of Confession to come out in December.**

 **I would like to thank Music Chick, AKA Ren, for her help with formatting and some ideas. Thanks a lot, Ren ;-)**

 **Hope you all enjoy.**

* * *

" _Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the greatest rock band of the century: Davis and the XV's!"_

 _The crowd's screams are deafening as the band comes out on the stage. Davis Motomiya smiles from ear to ear as he basks in the display of adulation and love from the Tokyo Dome crowd. Pyrotechnics go off when he raises his arms out like Jesus, and they love every second of it. This continues as he runs from stage right to stage left._

" _Alright, Tokyo. Let's have a wild party!" he says. "Are you ready?"_

 _Screams greet his words. His smile grows even bigger._

" _I said…ARE YOU READY?"_

" _DAVIS, I LOVE YOU!" He heard several girls scream. He looks down and sees them going completely crazy over his presence, almost to the point of hysteria._

 _The band begins their opening song with a fast tempo. The crunch of the guitars is just right enough that people could head bang to it and the drums echo through the entire stadium. Davis starts jumping_

" _ **There I was completely wasting. Out of work and down. All inside it's so frustrating as I drift from town to town,"**_ _he sings, running around the stage as he does so. "_ _ **Feel as though nobody cares if I live or die. So I might as well begin to put some action in my life."**_

 _After a brief stop, they break into the chorus with the guitarist palm muting the strings on his guitar as he plays the riff._

" _ **Breaking the law. Breaking the law,"**_ _continues Davis as he starts banging his head as well. "_ _ **Breaking the law. Breaking the law. Breaking the law. Breaking the law."**_

 _He is so full of energy and adrenaline that he jumps off the stage and into the crowd, expecting the throngs of people to catch him._

* * *

BAM!

"Ow," he groans as pain shoots through the back of his head.

Instead of the hands of the people on the floor, Davis feels his head come in contact with the ground. His head hurt and his eyes flicker until they are fully open.

The former leader of the second group of Digidestined is now at the age of twenty-four. Despite that, he has not changed at all, personality-wise, compared to when he was eleven and first went to the Digital World. His burgundy hair is still spiky, but longer than it was before, and he still has a rambunctious, unpredictable personality. He had dropped out of college so he could pursue his dream of being a famous rock star like Tai and the others did. When he saw them in concert for the first time, he knew he wanted to do that too. Thus far, it has not been as successful as he had hoped; they had done nothing but play parties and crappy bars for the past two years with no hopes of a record deal in sight.

He pouts as he realizes that he is in his room and not the Tokyo Dome.

' _It was just a dream.'_ He thinks, sighing in disappointment. He looks down at his tattooed forearms: he had a 'V' on his right forearm and Veemon on his other arm. He had others on his torso but his shirt blocked them.

The sound of his cell phone going off on the bedside table above him causes him to scramble. Throwing the sheets off and rising to his feet, he answers the phone while still rubbing the back of his head.

"Hello?" He answers.

"Davis, where are you?" A frantic male voice screams through the phone.

"Kosuke?" Davis replied at the sound of his co-worker's voice. "What's up?"

"You should have been here a half hour ago, man," is the reply. "Better get over here fast or you're gonna get fired!"

Davis's looks over at his clock but he sees that it stopped some time during the night because it read 1:30 a.m. Realizing this, he unplugs it so he can reset it. His eyes bug out in horror once it resets. It was now 9:45.

"Damn!"

At the speed of a roadrunner, he changes out of his PJ's and into his work clothes, brushes his teeth and hair, and slams the door to his room behind him. He sees his parents look at him with confounded looks as they eat breakfast.

"Davis, what's the rush?" His father asks.

"Can't talk right now," he responds as he runs out the door. "I'm late for work!"

It takes all of a minute and a half for Davis to reach the bottom floor of his apartment building, climb on top of his bike, and pedal away like he is in the last quarter mile of the Tour de France towards the noodle shop where he works. He has already been late to work three times in the past two weeks, which means that he would be fired if he were caught being late again.

As he rounds the corner towards the back of the shop, he does not see anyone standing in front of the door. He sighs in relief, thinking that he is in the clear and no one has noticed he didn't show up on time. He parks his bike at the bike rack and rushes towards the door.

"Well, well, well,"

Davis felt chills go up his spine at the sound of the manager's voice. It sounded like Satan standing at the gates of Hell. He cringed as he slowly turned to see his smirking face.

"Uh…Hi Mr. Kajiyama," he smiles a forced smile. "I can explain everything."

The manager shook his head with a smirk. "Davis, this is the fourth time you've shown up late to work in the last two weeks," he said.

"I know and I'm sorry," Davis bowed his head in contrition. "I can explain this," he said but he is stopped.

"Don't bother. I told you last time that if you were late again, I would have no choice but to fire you," continued his manager. "You're a good kid, Davis, but my hands are tied. You're fired."

He took Davis's nametag off of his shirt and walked back inside, leaving him standing in shock and disbelief. Turning away, Davis kicked a nearby can in frustration. As he watched it sail down the alley, he noticed a young woman walk up to him. It took a second for him to recognize her.

"Noriko," he called to her, smiling as he greeted his girlfriend with a hug and kiss on the cheek.

Her demeanor, however, made him stop his affection. She didn't look happy to see him at all, like she had bad news to deliver. Usually when they greet each other, she smiled at him and returned his displays of affection.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Davis, we need to talk," she immediately replied, a serious tone in her voice. "I'm pregnant."

The news hit him like an oncoming train. His smile evaporated, replaced by a neutral expression that gave no hint as to what he was feeling. The weight of what this meant seemed to be crushing down on him like a falling piano in the old cartoons.

"That's…" he began, trying to find the words to say next. Noriko was one of those people that you chose your words carefully around lest you risk bodily harm. "That's wonderful. We're gonna have a baby."

"That's what we need to talk about," she replied. Her tone indicated she was not as excited about this as he was. "We've been going in circles for a long time, Davis. You spend more time in the band than you do with me. Don't I matter to you?"

"Of course you do, babe," he said defensively. "It's just I have to find a way to make a living somehow."

"You play gigs twice a week," she retorted. "And you just got fired from your job. What do you call that?"

Davis groaned, having heard this from her before and really not in the mood to talk about it again. Though before he could get in another word, she continued her tirade.

"You know that everyone is calling you a loser? You have no college degree, as of now no job, and you still live with your parents. Do you know how pathetic that is?"

"That doesn't mean things won't…" Davis tried to defend himself but once again he was interrupted.

"No they won't, Davis. Grow up. You're not a kid anymore," Noriko sighed sadly before delivering the words that would crush Davis's heart. "We're done. I can't take this anymore. I have to think about what's best not only for me, but the baby as well. I'm sorry but I don't think that leaves room for you anymore in my life."

Davis could not believe what he had just heard. Noriko was pregnant…and she was breaking up with him? Was she really thinking about the baby being raised without a father? He saw it as incredibly selfish.

"What about the baby?" He demanded, progressively getting angrier and angrier as he spoke. "I'm ready to be a dad, Noriko. I promise you. I won't let the baby be raised without a father. If anyone is being selfish, it's you."

Taking a deep breath to regain his composure, he delivered his last retort to her. "You can't break up with me. I want out of this relationship."

Without another word, he walked over to the bike rack to climb on his bike. Without looking back, he heard Noriko yell at him, "You'll always be nothing, Davis."

' _Just you wait,'_ He thought to himself as he pedaled away. _'One day you are going to eat your words.'_

* * *

Davis slurped his noodles loudly as he took gigantic bite after gigantic bite. It seemed like it was not going to be a good day for him at all if the start was any indication. First he gets fired from his job and then his girlfriend tells him she's pregnant and that she's breaking up with him. Could this day get any worse?

Across the table from him, Cody watched his friend chomp down with a neutral expression and a stack of mail in his hand. The youngest member of the Digidestined was being as sympathetic to his friend's plight as he could but he too could not help but feel like Davis inflicted this on himself.

"So Noriko's pregnant but she didn't want to be with you anymore?" Cody asked, making sure that he heard Davis correctly when he spilled his guts to him.

Davis nodded, still chomping down on his noodles.

"Then you guys just were not mean to be," said Cody. "Like Hamlet said, 'Frailty, thy name is woman.'"

"You can say that again."

Cody was the bass player for Davis's band. They had started when he was a first-year at Waseda University and they needed a bass player. Even though Cody did not know how to play at the time, he gave it his best effort and he got to be pretty good at it. The only downside was his grandfather did not approve of him doing such a thing, believing that it was a waste of time. He still did not approve of his grandson being in a rock band but Cody was old enough to make his own decisions now and did not need as much guidance as when he was younger.

"Man, Cody," said Davis through a full mouth. "Your mom really knows how to make good noodles. I may have to ask for the recipe sometime."

"It's not that difficult," replied Cody as he sorted through the mail. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind at…"

He stopped.

Davis stopped eating to see what was wrong with Cody; he was holding a letter with his name on it and inscribed with the words ' _Harvard University._ ' Cody's face paled considerably, realizing the implications of what this letter meant for him. He had just graduated from Waseda as a pre-law student and had applied to several law schools in America, such as Stanford, Harvard, and Yale. While Stanford or Yale would be nice, Cody had his heart set especially on Harvard.

Cody continued to stare at the unopened letter, almost in fear that it would turn into a snake and bite him. What if it was a rejection letter? Despite graduating in the top five-percent of his class and having a résumé that would impress anyone, Cody still had fear that it wasn't going to be enough for Harvard.

"Well, aren't you gonna open it?" Davis asked, snapping Cody out of his daze. "Or are you just going to stare at it all day?"

"Uh…yeah," Cody replied, his eyes never leaving the letter.

He went into the kitchen to find a letter opener and found one in the top drawer. Tearing through the top of it, he pulls out the piece of paper that would change his life with a few simple words.

" _Dear Mr. Hida,_ " he reads. " _We are pleased to announce that your application has been approved. We look forward to your attendance at Harvard Law School and hope to see you soon. Hope you are well. Congratulations._ "

Tears streamed down Cody's face as he reread the letter again and again, making sure that it was real. He couldn't believe it. He had been accepted to Harvard Law School. If only his father could have been here at this moment to see it. Cody could just imagine how proud he would be.

"Mom! Grandpa!" He yelled. "Get in here."

They came barreling into the room in less than a second.

* * *

"Not again," Ken sighed as he looked at the letter in front of him. Unlike Cody's excitement across town, he was miserable with what the contents of the letter told him.

' _Dear Ken,_

 _After careful consideration, we regret to inform you that we have rejected your demo tape. While you certainly have the talent and the drive, we don't think that you and Yolei are right for us at this time._

 _We wish you the best of luck._

 _Virgin Records Japan'_

As he read it over and over again, Ken's mood grew darker and darker. This was the fourth rejection that he had received in two months from various record companies and each one was getting harder to accept as they came.

Crumpling up the letter and throwing it away, Ken took one last drag from his cigarette before walking back inside of the convenience store, where Yolei was restocking some shelves. Her mother stood at the counter, wiping it down, and her sister was restocking drinks. The store was devoid of customers for the time being but business was sure to pick up as the day got going.

He and Yolei had been dating since high school, where Ken started becoming more heavily involved with music. It was a good outlet for him since he still had many demons that needed to be exorcised from his past and Yolei had some singing experience so the two of them decided to perform together, thinking it would be fun.

The two started off performing in cafés and things went from there. Ken was so convinced that they could make it together that he started sending off demo tapes to record companies in hopes of receiving a deal. So far that hasn't happened with three rejections before Virgin rejected them.

Even with a degree from the University of Tokyo and a steady job, Ken was not ready to give up just yet; things were bound to change. He just knew it.

"Hey Ken," called Mrs. Inoue from the counter, pointing to three boxes near his feet. "Can you put those in the back? They're taking up space."

"Sure," he nodded, moving towards the boxes of instant ramen. Picking them up, he moved towards the back area. Being unable to see in front of him, Ken ran straight into Yolei, causing the boxes and the two of them to fall to the floor.

"Oh I'm so sorry, Ken," Yolei quickly apologized before helping him pick them up. "Let me help you."

"It's ok," he replied, shrugging it off. "I couldn't see where I was going in the first place."

Yolei smiled and gave him a kiss on the cheek before the two headed towards the back to put down the boxes of ramen. Her nose wrinkled once she got a whiff of his scent.

"You know smoking's bad for you, right?" She said before walking back to the front of the store. He grunted uncaringly, having heard this lecture from her many times before.

At twenty-five years old, Yolei still looked incredibly beautiful with her lavender hair tied up in a single braid and glasses over her honey brown eyes. Despite her normally sweet disposition, Yolei had a temper that could get hot on a dime when the situation called for it.

"So what did the letter say?" She asked.

Ken's blood ran cold. He was nervous to tell her that they suffered another rejection; she had been giving him several indications that she possibly wanted to move on from music and stick with owning the convenience store when her parents retired.

"We got rejected again," he sighed. "They said that we just 'weren't right at this time.'" He quoted the letter.

Ken could tell she was not taking it well as Yolei sighed and grew noticeably irritable.

"You know," she began. "I think that it may be time to put a lid on this thing, sweetheart. We've been doing this for a long time and it hasn't gotten anywhere."

He frowned. "So you're saying we should just call it quits because we haven't had a break yet? It's bound to happen, Yolei, I promise you."

"Bound to happen when?" She demanded, her infamous temper starting to heat up. "Five years, ten years, when? In case you haven't noticed, I have something to fall back on: taking over the convenience store when it's my time. You keep this up and you'll get nowhere, Ken Ichijouji."

"Have some faith, Yolei," Ken fired back. "I've got a full crop of songs coming that are bound to land us a deal. You really want to run a convenience store for the rest of your life? Don't you want something better?"

"Why would I?" She retorted. "At least my future is certain when I inherit the store."

"If you want to quit, be my guest. I'm going to keep moving ahead."

A silence fell over them as the implications of their statements sunk in. Yolei was surprised to see Ken snap at her. Ever since he had quelled the darkness within him all those years ago, it would take a lot to get him worked up about something.

"I do love you, Ken," she said, caressing his cheek lovingly. "I just think it's time to grow up and put this aside."

"Spare me," he spat, pushing her hand away. "If you wanted to quit, you just had to say so. It would have spared us a lot of trouble in the long run. I'm going to stay with my parents tonight so don't expect me to be back at home."

Without another word to her, he turned away and walked towards the back so he could count the inventory and make sure they were all set, leaving Yolei hurt by his words.

* * *

That night, after taking the subway to Tamachi, Ken found himself standing outside the door of his childhood home. All of the memories that it held, good and bad, filled him as he knocked on the door.

He missed him. He missed his brother and it pained him to walk back to this house filled with the constant reminders of what once was. Sometimes when he felt this way, writing helped soothe his emotions. If he was going to stay here tonight, it looked like he'd be writing more than sleeping. Just like in the past.

Within a matter of moments, the door opened and there stood his mother.

"Oh, Ken," she greeted, surprised to see him but embracing him in a hug nonetheless. "What brings you here?"

"Hi, Mom," he smiled, leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Yolei and I had an argument and I hoped that I could stay here for tonight so I can have a chance to calm down."

"Of course," Mrs. Ichijouji didn't hesitate to nod. "You know you are always welcome here. Come in. You're just in time for dinner. Are you hungry?"

* * *

Ken next found himself sitting on the floor of his room with a guitar in his lap. The room used to be Sam's when he was still alive but Ken was given it after he died. Even though it had been sixteen years since that fateful day, Ken sometimes felt his presence in the room. As crazy as it sounded, Sam never truly left.

The note pad in front of him was completely blank as he plucked some strings, trying to come up with a riff that sounded good. The thoughts of his brother continued their assault on his senses. Sam would have been 27 now if he were here and doing who knows what. He could have done anything he wanted to do and been great at it, whether it was politics or winning a Nobel Prize. Ken knew how much the what-ifs continued to haunt his parents to this very day, even though they wouldn't say it in public.

' _Why did he have to die?'_ Ken asked himself. _'Why couldn't I do anything to help him? I know I could have. At least his troubles are over while I still have to deal with it. He's forever eleven and in his prime. Despite sixteen years passing, it never gets any easier.'_

Those thoughts seemed to spark something inside of Ken. Immediately he started writing down words on the note pad, never stopping until his thoughts were put down completely. He wondered what it would be like on the other side, the side where Sam was at this very moment: a place with no suffering, no pain, no sadness, only paradise and salvation.

After ten more minutes, the words finally ran out and Ken looked down at the page full of lyrics that were freshly written. As he looks over them, he feels tears start to burn his eyes. They were so poignant and emotional that he could feel it in every word. Thinking of a title, he wrote it at the top of the page.

' _Say Hello 2 Heaven.'_

He smiled. So appropriate and simple yet carried so much meaning. Not wanting to stop this burst of inspiration, he continued to write deep into the night. Once he felt like he had the songs where he wanted them, he would record demos to put a tape together to send off to another record company. Maybe now they would see his genius and give him and Yolei a deal.

By the time he collapsed from exhaustion, it was almost dawn. He slept hunched over his guitar with music and lyric sheets spread all around him from the hours and hours of writing that he did. The tips of his fingers were calloused and red from holding down the strings.

"Ken, honey," his mother came into the room. "Breakfast is ready if you're…"

Once she saw how out of it he was and all the piles of paper surrounding him, she paused her sentence. Moving towards the bed with a smile on her face, she grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around his sleeping form. With a muttering of "sweet dreams," she kissed the top of his head and walked out of the room to leave him in peace.

* * *

 **What do you think? A much slower beginning than in 'FAAB' but there's a method to that. A mixed bag of fortunes thus far: Cody has been accepted to Harvard Law School, Davis was dumped as he found out he was going to be a father, and Ken and Yolei haven't been getting along too well for a while now. Whatever could happen next? Find out next time on The New Digi. Make sure to review and subscribe as you read.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys. Sorry to take so long with this chapter but I have been pretty busy lately so I am glad I was able to find time to finish this up over the past week. Hope you all enjoy this chapter because things are about to get interesting.**

* * *

"What the hell, man!" Davis threw his hands in the air.

"Yeah, I'm not feeling this anymore. I'm out," the drummer released a sigh, placing the sticks in his backpack.

"Me too," the guitarist followed suit, zipping his guitar in his case. "You know you're my number one guy, Davis, but I've got bills to pay."

Judging by his red face, wide eyes, flared nostrils, gritted teeth, and clenched fists that were shaking with anger, Davis looked like a human Krakatoa about ready to blow at any second.

"Well then fine!" He roared. "If you guys don't want to be with us anymore, then by all means get out of here. Cody and I will carry on just fine without you guys holding us back."

Cody, much more calm and level headed than his counterpart, calmly walked up to the two.

"If you guys want to go, that's your decision," he said. "But surely we can work something out so that there is no bad blood between us. We've been doing this for a long time together so it's only fair."

The two looked at each other before looking back at him.

"Sorry, Cody, but I don't think we can do that," said the guitarist. "You're a good kid but we think that it's just time to give this up."

"Yeah," the drummer added. "You probably won't be that far behind, man. You just got into Harvard Law School. You've got a bright future ahead of you so why bother banging your head against a wall that's not gonna give?"

Cody's face went from neutral to a frown at their words. They sounded just like his grandfather when they talked the previous day, almost word for word. Hida demanded that he give up the band and enroll at Harvard the upcoming semester, which his mother agreed with. Even though it was what they wanted, Cody was not sure if it was what he wanted to do. He wasn't that little kid who needed guidance after the loss of his father anymore. He was a man now and could make his own decisions.

"I'm more dedicated than both of you ever were," he answered. "I believe in it. It's that simple."

The two of them scoffed before turning heel and walking out of the room.

"Fine but don't come crying to us when you're broke, homeless, and nobodies," the guitarist sneered as they slammed the door.

Once the door was closed, Cody heard the sounds of drums being tossed across the room and cymbals being slammed onto the ground. He turned to see Davis throwing the biggest temper tantrum that he had ever seen.

"Davis, try to calm down," he said, stopping him before he could throw the bass drum right out the window. "This is only going to compound your problem."

"Compound my problem?!" Davis roared, wanting to throw the bass drum so badly. "We're finished, Cody. Don't you see it? Who are we going to find to replace the guys we lost? It's hopeless!"

SLAP!

Davis dropped the drum to rub the red imprint of Cody's hand on his cheek. Taking a deep breath from that, he started to feel better.

"Thanks," he said in a normal tone. "I needed that."

* * *

A little while later, the two of them sat in a noodle shop. On stools at the bar, the two slurped noodles and drank beer as they tried to figure out what to do next. With the loss of their two other members, it would be hard to carry on, especially with Cody imminently needing to make a decision on whether or not he wanted to enroll in law school the upcoming semester.

"It's official. My life has gone to hell, Cody," Davis scowled as he took another sip of his beer and chomped down another chopstick-full of noodles. "I've got nothing left. It can't get any worse from here."

"Don't be so dramatic," Cody patted him on the back. "Things will turn around. I'm sure of it."

Davis wasn't buying it. The scowl on his face never left as he stared at his younger friend like he just told him he would be a millionaire next week.

"Yeah right," he scoffed. "First I lose my job, then my pregnant girlfriend, and now we lose two important members of our group. Noriko was right. I am a complete loser."

"Are you sure that the baby is yours?" Cody asked. "This kind of thing happens all the time during child support cases where the father is forced to make payments on a child that actually wasn't his to begin with."

"Of course the baby is mine!" Davis roared, getting into the future lawyer's face. "It came from my loins and is mine as much as it is hers!"

Slumping back on his seat, he chugged his beer, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "How can she blindside me like that? Who does that? Who says 'It's over. Oh! By the way, I'm pregnant'? She can't do this to me, man!"

"Actually, if she really wanted to, she could take you to court," Cody began until Davis grabbed him by the collar of his shirt aggressively.

"Don't use your lawyer shit on me, mister," he seethed. "Not unless you want me to pop you in the mouth. Try and sue me for that."

Before he could do anything, a news report on the television behind the bar caught Davis's attention.

" **The hottest band in the world, Digivolution, returns to Tokyo for seven shows,** " said the reporter, showing footage of the band in question. Tai and Matt were singing together like Steven Tyler and Joe Perry while Izzy strutted around the stage. **"They will perform two shows at Nippon Budokan, two at the Tokyo Dome, two at the Saitama Super Arena, and a special show for 2,000 lucky fans in Odaiba near the bayside mall. Tickets go on sale tomorrow at 15:00 p.m."**

" **That's not all, Yuki,"** the co-host chimed in. **"Lead singer Tai Kamiya has announced that he and his wife, Sora, are expecting their second child. Here is the announcement made just an hour ago."**

Davis could only watch as an image of Tai came on the screen, Sora by his side and their son Tatsuke in her arms.

" **Sora and I have some pretty big news that we would like to tell all of you,"** he said. **"We are excited to announce that Sora is pregnant. We can't be any happier or excited than we are now. We will love this child as much as we love our son. Thank you very much."**

Davis sipped his beer some more as a miserable look made its way onto his face. While he was nobody, Tai and the others were becoming major superstars. He envied how happy Tai seemed to be: he was a celebrity, had a wonderful wife, a son who adored him, and now he had another child on the way.

"Why can't we be like that, Cody?" He said, gesturing to the TV.

"Not everyone is meant to be famous I guess, Davis," Cody sighed as he took another sip of beer. "This is supposed to be fun anyway; we do it because we like doing it."

Before Davis could do anything else, he felt his text message ringtone go off. Reaching down for his phone, he looked and saw that the message was from Ken.

' _Hey Davis. Want to meet for lunch later? It would be nice to see you.'_

Within seconds, he replied.

' _Sure. Name the place and I'll be there.'_

He smiled at the text message. Ken was right; it had been a while since the two of them had seen each other. Ever since high school, the two saw each other more sporadically than when they were younger. While he focused on the band after dropping out of college, Ken graduated from the University of Tokyo with a criminology degree and worked with Yolei at her family's convenience store.

* * *

"Davis, over here!"

Davis smiled as he saw Ken wave to him from the table he was sitting at. It had been a while since the two had seen each other but it was always a great experience whenever he was with him. He made his way over to the table.

"Hey, Ken," he greeted, giving Ken a bro hug before sitting across from him. "How's it going, dude? It's been a while."

"Yes it has," Ken smiled back. "It's not your fault though, we've both been busy for the past while. So tell me, how's everything going for you?"

Davis groaned.

"Could be better," he replied. "I lost my job and Noriko and I broke up yesterday but that's not the worst part about it. She told me she was pregnant before she said we were done."

"Oh, dude," Ken said sympathetically, placing a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder. "That sucks. If there's anything you need, don't hesitate to let me know."

Davis smiled, happy to have such a reliable friend like Ken behind him.

"Thanks," he said, quickly changing the subject. "How about you? Hope things are better for you than they are for me."

"I would say they're about the same," Ken replied. "Work's been keeping me busy, Yolei and I got rejected by yet another label, and things aren't going so well between us at the moment."

The mention of rejection caused Davis's eyebrow to perk up in interest.

"You play music, Ken?" He asked, interested to see where this could be going. "I never knew that."

"Figures you wouldn't," Ken shrugged. "It's not something I was very open about before but I think Yolei and I have what it takes to be pretty good. The problem is that the record execs just don't seem to agree with me. We've been rejected four times already and Yolei's telling me that she's thinking of stopping with music."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a tape.

"What's that?" Davis asked, feeling the gears start to turn in his head. If Ken was as good as he thought, then maybe he had just caught a lucky break.

"It's a tape I made last night," Ken explained. "I was at my parents' apartment for the night and I wrote well into the wee hours of the morning. I think it's pretty good but I'm not sure what others will think of it."

"Well why don't you let me take it home and have a listen?"

Ken reacted with surprise at how excited Davis seemed to sound about the tape. He thought it was good but he wasn't sure if anyone else would like it. Then the memory of the rejections crossed his mind and he realized he should have another opinion on the tape before he passed it along to record companies.

"Sure," he nodded. "If you want to. I don't really care."

He handed Davis the tape before looking at his watch.

"Oh man, I'm late for work," he got up from the table and left the restaurant. "I'll see ya, Davis."

"See ya, Ken," Davis called after him before looking down at the tape in his hands. It very well could hold the solution to all his problems and turn his life around.

* * *

Later, Davis was reclining on his bed, headphones in his ears and loud, raucous punk rock music was blasting through them. Clad only in boxers and socks on his feet, he was trying his hardest to be at peace. Looking up at his prized poster of Digivolution, he fantasized about what it would be like to be as famous and successful as them.

Today was certainly a rough day for the young man; two band members quit the band and he was no closer to finding a job than he was the day before. It was also possible that Cody could be forced to quit the band because of law school. Sometimes he felt envious of his young friend: he had a future and something to fall back on while he had nothing at the moment. No venues or parties were booking him for a gig at the moment either because he and his band supposedly sucked. He did not know what they were talking about. Sure, they had some rough edges to them but he wouldn't say that they sucked. No one was calling more so now because it was just he and Cody.

' _You're throwing your life away on this, Davis. You will always be nothing.'_

Those were the last words his sister Jun said to him before she moved out of their family's apartment and into her own place in Yokohama. Last he heard, she had a boyfriend and was working at a nail salon.

Rolling his eyes, Davis turned over onto his right side.

' _What do I care what she thinks?'_ He thought. _'I know what I am doing is what I want and I don't care what others think of it.'_

Turning his gaze from the floor, his eyes moved to his nightstand, where Ken's tape sat untouched since that afternoon. Taking off his headphones, Davis took the tape from the stand and popped it into his boom box. Pressing the play button, he was met with the sound of an acoustic guitar. Listening to the song itself, he felt drawn into the opening riff. Then he heard Ken's voice seep through the speakers.

" **Please, mother mercy. Take me from this place. And the long windy curses, I hear in my head. The words never listen, and teachers, oh they never learn. My warmth from the candle, though I feel too cold to burn,"** Ken's voice sounded like a wounded spirit struggling to find salvation. **"He came from the city, then he died in the street. And he hurt so bad, like a soul breakin', but he never said nothing to me. Say hello to heaven, heaven, heaven. Say hello to heaven."**

That chorus seemed to stir something within Davis's soul, like Ken was trying to speak to someone in the Great Beyond. Then it dawned on him: maybe Ken was singing to his brother. The line about him dying in the street Davis remembered most because Ken said that Sam died from being hit by a car one day.

The rest of the song passed by and already Davis was amazed by what he had heard. Ken was a really good songwriter, better than he was anyway. If Ken were to join the band, then they could write real songs and actually be taken seriously for once. Plus he was one heck of a guitar player to top it off.

By the time the tape was done, Davis was sold on Ken right away.

"Davis, dinner's ready," his mother's voice called from the kitchen.

"One minute, Mom," he called back, reaching for his cell phone. He quickly dialed Ken's number and waited for the call to go through.

After ringing for several seconds, a reply came on the other line.

"Hello?"

"Ken?" Davis replied.

"Yes."

"It's Davis. I just heard your tape and I have to say, dude, I was blown away by what I heard. It was absolutely incredible. You have real talent, man."

"Well I appreciate the compliment, Davis," Ken's voice sounded bashful on the other line. He could imagine a blush on his friend's face too. "But is it good enough for record companies? Is it strong enough that they would consider signing Yolei and I?"

"I don't know about them but it certainly was good enough for me," Davis replied. "Before you say anything else, I have a proposition for you."

"What would that be?"

"Cody and I are in a band together and we just had our drummer and guitarist both leave today," he explained. "After listening to your tape, I was wondering if maybe you would like to join us as our guitarist and co-songwriter with me. You have a lot of talent, Ken, and you would be helping Cody and I out of a tight spot."

Silence greeted him for several seconds.

"Ken, you still there?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm still here," Ken replied. "This is all just…unexpected, you know? I never thought about joining a band before. I guess I can jam with you guys for a session and see how it goes."

Davis punched a fist in the air in celebration. This was exactly the kind of break he needed and hopefully it all would work out.

"Sure," he finally said. "When could you come over so we can do that?"

"Tomorrow afternoon if that works for you."

"Yeah that works. Want to meet around two o'clock?"

"Sounds good to me."

A smile finally worked its way onto Davis's face.

"Sweet. See you then, dude. Thanks a lot."

"No problem."

The line disconnected but Davis was too excited to care. A boost of adrenaline went straight through him and after tossing his phone onto the bed, he let out his newfound energy the only way he knew how.

"YES!" He cried, pumping his fists into the air. "YES! YES! YES!"

* * *

"You sure this is going to work?" Cody asked as he slung his black Ibanez GSR205 five-string bass over his shoulder.

"Trust me, Cody," Davis smiled in assurance. "You will be totally blown away by how good Ken is."

After a few more minutes, their honored guest walked into the rehearsal space clutching a Jackson guitar case and a Marshall amp. Ken smiled at them in greeting as he settled his things down.

"Hi, guys."

"Hey ya, Ken," Davis returned his smile. "You ready?"

"As I'll ever be," Ken shrugged as he opened his guitar case to reveal a slick, shiny black Jackson King V. He chuckled as he saw Davis and Cody's eyes widen at the sight of it, like they had never seen one before.

As he put the strap on it around his shoulders and plugged the guitar chord into the amp, he turned it on and proceeded to tune the guitar until he had it to where he wanted it . Then he looked at them with earnest excitement.

"So what do you guys wanna play?" He asked.

The two were still in awe over Ken's guitar that they couldn't form coherent sentences. Ken chuckled once again to himself and started a song himself. Playing a descending harmonic riff on the low E string, he ended on a power chord and looked to see if the other two were going to follow along with him.

Cody and Davis recognized the song, which prompted Cody to start playing the bass riff. Ken soon followed with a riff on a B minor chord before playing a palm-muted riff along with Cody's bass.

Davis then came in with the words.

" **Hey little sister, what have you done? Hey little sister, who's the only one?"** He sang, twisting his face into a sneer as he started to get a rhythm going. **"Hey little sister, who's your Superman? Hey little sister, who's the one you want? Hey little sister, shotgun!"**

Ken then broke out of the palm muting to hit several chords once while Davis sang the chorus.

" **It's a nice day to…start again. It's a nice day for a…white wedding. It's a nice day to…start again!"**

The rest of the song continued on the same way as it began with Ken even freestyling on a solo towards the end. Davis began to strut around the space and dance around as the sounds of Ken's guitar seemed to slam into his soul.

When the song ended, the three of them seemed to have exactly the same thoughts as each other. This could probably work out.

Davis was the first to say something.

"Did you guys feel that?" He asked, a Cheshire cat smile tattooed on his face. "I think we have something here."

Ken nodded. "I agree. Something is definitely there between us."

"So what do you say, Ken?" Davis stuck his hand out. "Think you want to join us after all?"

Ken looked at Davis's hand and seemed to think about it for a few seconds, which caused his friend to start getting nervous. Before Davis started to think that Ken maybe would say no, Ken reached out and shook his hand.

"I'm in," he smiled. "I'll join you."

Before Davis could leap for joy, Ken interjected once more.

"On one condition though. Yolei and I are a package deal so she has to join the band too or I'm not going to."

' _What could Yolei offer us?'_ Davis frowned, not liking the idea for a brief moment. _'We did lose our drummer but can she even play drums? I wish we could get TK to play with us since he's the best drummer in the world right now.'_

"Can she play drums?" He asked.

"A little bit," Ken replied, sensing his friend's apprehension. "She's serviceable enough that we can get by."

With this information, Davis thought about it for a few more seconds before he came to a decision.

"Alright, it's a deal," he shook Ken's hand once more. "First practice will be on Saturday at noon. You two better be there."

"We will."

* * *

 **And now the group has come together. How will things play out for them? Find out next time on The New Digi.**

 **The songs belong to Temple of the Dog and Billy Idol so I do not take credit there for those. I'm really excited to see how this all plays out, which is kind of an odd statement because I'm the one writing it but I hope you guys all feel the same. Be sure to leave a review and subscribe as you read the story. It just motivates me even more to keep writing this for you guys. See you next time.**


End file.
